Keyless plastic saxophone

ABSTRACT

A conically shaped, keyless plastic wind instrument with eight holes, consisting of a single body and a detachable a mouthpiece. The instrument is fully chromatic and capable of playing in any of the traditional twelve keys of Western music—producing notes through a player&#39;s vibration of a single reed affixed to a soprano saxophone type mouthpiece, and through the opening or closing of a plurality of tone holes along its length by use of the fingers. The instrument is one of a family of keyless saxophones which can be pitched in the alto, soprano, and soprano range by the lengthening or shortening of the body and by changing the location of the eight finger holes. By opening or closing the finger holes, the standing sound wave—created inside the instrument by the player&#39;s vibration of the reed affixed to the mouthpiece—is intersected at locations along the length of the body producing a vibration at a determined musical pitch, the scale of which is tuned to A=440, standard concert tuning. All members of this instrument family have the same fingering patterns, which are based on recorder (or vertical flute) fingerings.

BACKGROUND—FIELD OF INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to a keyless, lightweight plastic saxophonecomprising a body with eight finger holes, coupled at its most narrowend to a single-reed mouthpiece and open at the opposite end, capable ofbeing mass produced inexpensively and in various keys.

BACKGROUND—DESCRIPTION OF PRIOR ART

[0002] The brass saxophone, used in marching bands and in many areas ofpopular music, was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Saxin the 1840s. According to some music historians, the instrument wascreated by placing a bass clarinet style mouthpiece, to which a singlereed was fastened by a metal ligature, onto a conically shaped brasshorn called an ophicleide. The sound is produced when a performervibrates the reed, generating a standing wave inside the instrument.Individual musical notes are produced through the manipulation of asystem of metal keys and sprung rods, which open or close various toneholes along the length of the body, with the use of leather pads, andthereby intersect the sound wave at specific points to produce a desiredpitch.

[0003] The modern saxophone family includes seven members: the sopraninoin Eb, soprano in Bb, Alto in Eb, Tenor in Bb, Baritone in Eb, Bass inBb, and Contrabass in Eb. Historically, the family has also includedinstruments pitched in C and F. All members of the family are producedin a curved configuration resembling the letter “J,” and some ofthem—the sopraninos, sopranos, altos and tenors—are also produced instraight models.

[0004] The saxophone is unusual among musical instruments in that it hasremained largely unchanged since its invention. Keys have been added tofacilitate the playing of certain notes, and improvements have been madein such areas as the octave key, pads, and tone hole configurations, butthe basic model endures. Today, the modern saxophone—most always made ofbrass—includes hundreds of individual parts and requires thousands ofdifferent manipulations before it is ready for playing.

[0005] The numerous parts and manipulations necessarily make thesaxophone relatively expensive, and in the 1960s a plastic saxophone(the Grafton) was produced to offer an instrument which would be moreaffordable than one made of brass. The experimental saxophone, usingmetal pad cups, rods, and springs affixed to a plastic body, was limitedto a production of sixty instruments, before the manufacturer went outof business. History does not record the invention or production of akeyless plastic saxophone.

[0006] Saxophones have also been made from bamboo, and today theseinstruments are manufactured by hand in tropical areas of the worldwhere bamboo is in great abundance. Such instruments are usually madeonly in limited quantity, since they require great labor by individualartisans, and they are also subject to intonation problems, and relatedproblems involving pitch, since they lack the quality control assured bymodern manufacturing processes.

[0007] Various instrument makers and sellers whose instruments arecomprised of a saxophone mouthpiece and attached reed coupled to acylindrical body of plastic or wood have put forth claims that theirinstrument is a type of saxophone. Such instruments are not saxophones,however, since they lack a conically shaped bore. They are, instead,clarinets, or more accurately, chalameaus (folk clarinets which werefirst invented during the Renaissance).

OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a saxophonethat would be affordable even to those of modest means. By eliminatingthe need for an expensive metal body, keys, rods, pads, springs, andother costly components of the traditional saxophone, the keylessplastice saxophone can be produced entirely by the extrusion process,thus eliminating the many man-hours needed to assemble a traditionalsaxophone and making it affordable to individuals with limitedresources. At the same time, the keyless plastic saxophone's simpleconstruction makes it extremely durable, as there are no moving parts towear out.

[0009] Also, this invention offers a portability that is not possible ina traditional instrument. While the Bb plastic soprano saxophone, forexample, weighs approximately ten ounces, a metal soprano weighs up tothree pounds. In addition, the plastic saxophone's lack of delicate keywork and pads allows it to be transported without requiring the kind ofunwieldy and heavy case which is necessary to protect a traditionalsaxophone from damage.

[0010] Moreover, the keyless plastic saxophone is an ideal instrumentfor students of the recorder who desire a more sophisticated soundwithout having to relearn new fingering patterns and master a difficultsystem of keys, pads, and rods like those found on woodwind instrumentssuch as the saxophone, flute, clarinet, and oboe. Since the keylesssaxophone's fingerings are based on those of the recorder, students willfind little difficulty in making the transition from the former to thelatter. Additionally, the keyless saxophone is easily manipulated bychildren and adults with small hands, and its light weight, also,greatly increases its manageability for all individuals.

DRAWING FIGURES

[0011] The advantages and characteristics of the keyless saxophone canbe more easily understood through the description of the followingdrawings which shows in

[0012]FIG. 1 a frontal view of the present invention as coupled to astandard soprano saxophone mouthpiece and showing the eight tone holes;

[0013]FIG. 2 a side view of the present invention, as it appears in acurved model; and

[0014]FIG. 3 a cross section view showing the present invention'srecessed neck, which is cylindrical on the outside and tapered on theinside, and also showing the internal and external taper of theinstrument's body.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0015] The keyless plastic saxophone consists of a conical body to whichis affixed—at its narrow end—a soprano saxophone style mouthpiece,attached to which is a single reed secured by a metal or plasticligature. The saxophone, which is also open at its widest end, has alongits length eight tone holes. These tone holes can be opened and closedin various fingering patterns to change the pitch of the instrument, byaltering the a standing sound wave initiated when the player's lipsvibrate the reed. The fingering system, based upon that of the Germanand Baroque recorders (vertical flutes), is identical in all members ofthis particular saxophone family, and every member of the family has abasic range of one-and-a-half octaves (eighteen notes) with anothereight notes made possible through the combination of various alternatefingerings. The twenty-six note possible range of the instrumentcompares favorably with the thirty-two note range of the traditionalbrass saxophone.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS—FIGS. 1 to 3

[0016] First Embodiment

[0017] Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the keyless plasticsaxophone comprises a single reed 1, secured by thumb screws 2 and ametal or plastic ligature 5, to a standard soprano saxophone mouthpiece4, which is coupled to a conical body 6, at its narrow end 3. The bodyof the instrument 6 has along its length a plurality of tone holes 7(the location of which are calculated to produce a desired musicalpitch. The musical pitch is produced when the player vibrates the reed 1attached to the mouthpiece 4, which creates a standing wave inside theentire length of the instrument, from the mouthpiece 4 to the bell 9.The opening or closing of the tone holes 7 through various fingercombinations based on the finger system of the Baroque recorder (orvertical flute) allows the playing of more than a full chromatic scaleand a half (or twenty notes). The fundamental tone hole 8, set at adistance from the tip of the mouthpiece 4, determines the key in whichthe instrument is pitched. The present invention can be fabricated inmodels comprising the tenor, alto, soprano, and sopranino range.

[0018] Second Embodiment

[0019] Referring to FIG. 2 of the drawings, the present invention isdepicted in a side-view and with a curved (“J-shaped) body, rather thanthe straight body illustrated in FIG. 1. With the exception of thecurved bell 9, the embodiment of FIG. 2 is identical to the embodimentof FIG. 1, including the reed 1, the thumbscrews 2 for securing the reed1, to the mouthpiece 4, the ligature which holds the reed to themouthpiece 4, the neck of the instrument which couples to the mouthpiece4, the conical body 6, with its plurality of tone holes 7, and theinstrument's fundamental tone hole 8. The curved, “J-shaped” bodyaffords the player easier access to the tone hole(s) 7 of the instrumentwhen made in its larger forms as alto or tenor saxophones.

[0020] Third Embodiment

[0021] Turning to FIG. 3, the exterior of the keyless plastic saxophonecomprises a conical bell 9, a conical body 6, and cylindrical neck 3which fits inside the cylindrical chamber of a standard sopranomouthpiece. Since the exterior of the neck 3 is configured to fit snuglyinside the rounded end of the mouthpiece 4 a, the present inventionobviates the need for the cork-sheathed neck of a traditional brasssaxophone, thus lowering labor costs without compromising the integrityof the instrument. While the neck 3 is cylindrical on the exterior, itis tapered on the interior 3 a. This taper continues through theinterior of the body 6 a and the bell 9 a and ends at the fundamentaltone hole 8. The present instrument thus preserves the characteristicsaxophone sound generated when its internal taper acts on the sound wavegenerated by the player's vibration of the single-reed 1, secured to themouthpiece 4 by a ligature 5 and thumb screws 2.

[0022] Conclusion

[0023] Since the basic sound of the saxophone is primarily determined bythe taper and density of its conical body rather than by the materialsused in its construction, the keyless plastic version of the instrumentdoes not sacrifice richness of voice in its construction. Moreover,

[0024] its simplicity makes possible an instrument that is affordableeven to those of modest income;

[0025] its light weight makes it highly portable;

[0026] its plastic composition makes it extremely durable;

[0027] its fingering system makes it easily learned by students of therecorder; and

[0028] its lack of moving parts eliminates the need for costly repairsor for heavy cases to protect a delicate keywork like that found ontraditional saxophones.

What is claimed:
 1. A keyless, fully chromatic, plastic saxophonecapable of playing in all keys and having a range of two octavescomprising, a) a standard soprano saxophone mouthpiece made of plasticor metal, the middle section of which is covered by a metal ligaturecontaining two adjustable screws for the purpose of securing a singlereed to the mouthpiece, b) a plastic body (coupled to a mouthpiece atits narrow end) consisting of a straight or curved tube which graduallyincreases in diameter along its length and which contains a plurality oftone holes, the opening or closing of which—by use of thefingers—creates the notes of a standard twelve-tone chromatic scale bydiverting at various points a standing wave created inside theinstrument through the player's vibration of a reed,
 2. A saxophone asset forth in claim 1, which has the same degree of taper in its bore asthat found in a standard, keyed soprano saxophone,
 3. A saxophone (intenor, alto, soprano, sopranino, and sopranissimo versions) as set forthin claims 1 and 2, which has two configurations, straight and curved,with the length of its interchangeable bodies determining the key inwhich it is pitched, and with (a)—the tenor version comprisingsaxophones pitched in the keys of D, C, and Bb, and having a curved neckand curved body; (b)—the alto version comprising saxophones pitched inthe keys of Eb, E, F, F#, having a curved neck and bodies which areeither straight or curved, with the alto version pitched in G havingeither a curved or straight neck or a curved or straight body, ĉ—thesoprano version comprising saxophones pitched in the keys of Ab, A, Bb,B, C, and C# and having a straight neck and body, (d)—the sopraninoversion comprising saxophones pitched in the keys of D, Eb, E, F, F# andG, and having a straight neck and body. (e)—the spranissimo versioncomprising saxophones pitched in the keys of Bb and C.